Game of Thrones: 1x01 - "Winter is Coming" - Premieres April 17 on HBO

[DarKush]

Re: Game of Thones: 1x01 - "Winter is Coming" - Premieres April 17 on

Finally got around to checking this out. I thought the opening and closing were good, but it dragged a little in the middle. I didn't care much for the Starks (sorry Sean Bean), and things didn't pick up until the King arrived. They packed a lot of characters and storylines into this and it was hard to follow. I got Lena Headley and the other blonde mixed up. Those two and their brothers are a little too similar. I didn't care for the 'savages' being the darker skinned peoples, though it was good seeing Jason Momoa pre-Conan.

I will be sticking around for this. It was an intriguing opening, and I'm willing to see how it will progress.

 

[backstept]

Re: Game of Thones: 1x01 - "Winter is Coming" - Premieres April 17 on

This will be as successful as the sword of truth series and just as accurate.... I thank god that I have never read or listened to the books so I will not be as disappointed as I was with the difference between the screen play and the books.

Legend of the Seeker is a completely different kind of show . . . so I don't think a comparison is possible.

 

[JD]

Re: Game of Thones: 1x01 - "Winter is Coming" - Premieres April 17 on

How many episodes is the second season?
ML: It’s such a challenging show to produce. They don’t have a writing staff — it’s just the two of them [exec producers David Benioff and D.B. Weiss]. The idea is to do ten of them again, and that’s what they want to do, to maintain the quality of their work.
.

I wonder if they are able to go on to a third season they will stick to 10 episodes or if they'll add more since the book is almost 400 pages longer than AGoT.

 

[Owain Taggart]

Re: Game of Thones: 1x01 - "Winter is Coming" - Premieres April 17 on

This will be as successful as the sword of truth series and just as accurate.... I thank god that I have never read or listened to the books so I will not be as disappointed as I was with the difference between the screen play and the books.

Legend of the Seeker is a completely different kind of show . . . so I don't think a comparison is possible.

Yeah, better comparison would be between Pillars of the Earth, which frankly I feel had better acting and a better cast, though if there's one big difference it's that Pillars is based on one book compared to many. I almost feel it would have been better to make a series of HBO movies for each book rather than a series since it would have allowed them to focus more on the story and characters rather than flitting around so much between locations in a 1 hour show. Still, time will tell. The first episode probably had to be that way to introduce the many factions.

 

[Greylock Crescent]

Re: Game of Thones: 1x01 - "Winter is Coming" - Premieres April 17 on

As someone who never read the books before, I'd say this premiere was slightly above average. I liked parts of it and will keep watching for a bit. But I wasn't riveted or particularly engaged by the characters or story. The show boasts some nice production values -- it wasn't perfect, but for a fantasy piece, I could totally buy into the other-worldly setting. The performances ranged from serviceable to pretty good. But the pace itself seemed a bit slow -- even if the story covered a lot of ground -- as I kept waiting for something particularly interesting to happen.


And, of course, I couldn't escape the notion that the whole thing is a juvenile fantasy come to life. Not that there's anything wrong with such things (I've certainly enjoyed my share of juvenile fantasy films and shows and I might end up enjoying this particular juvenile fantasy, too). But it hardly felt like an "adult" or "mature" story -- which is what I had been expecting.

 

[Kegg]

Re: Game of Thones: 1x01 - "Winter is Coming" - Premieres April 17 on

Not bad. I read the novels a couple of weeks before the series premiered, and they were pretty breezy, easy, addictive reads (even if Martin is generally far more interested in describing the heraldry of every other hedge knight than I am reading about it.) I'd agree it was a little laden with exposition in trying to shove as many characters as possible at the audience, but even so, it was a pretty solid beginning to what looks like it'll be a pretty solid genre TV show. The casting seems uncannily spot on, which doesn't hurt.

It's good that it's doing awesome overseas.

That's a very important factor. Since HBO isn't advertiser supported they're free to renew shows if the overall revenues - such as from international sales and DVD/Blu-ray sales - are strong, even if the US ratings are only middle of the road.

The show's already made more by selling to overseas channels then, apparently, any other HBO series ever. I'd guess this show is doing alright.

 

[Out Of My Vulcan Mind]

Re: Game of Thones: 1x01 - "Winter is Coming" - Premieres April 17 on

The show's already made more by selling to overseas channels then, apparently, any other HBO series ever. I'd guess this show is doing alright.

Yeah, its international sales are 50% higher than The Sopranos, the previous HBO record holder.

 

[Hugo Rune]

Re: Game of Thones: 1x01 - "Winter is Coming" - Premieres April 17 on

I appreciate it is purely a monetary thing, but it pains me that HBO is constantly reducing their season episode orders down to 10.

They regularly produced 12-13 episodes with the likes of Deadwood/Sopranos/Six Feet Under, but with The Wire's 5th season they reduced it to ten - and it severely damaged the flow of the story and the season felt massively truncated.

If this season is a big as HBO hopes I feel they could do with being more flexible with the future season lengths.

Season 2 could fit in 11-12 episodes with Season 3 cramming into 13 fast paced episodes (a typical HBO order).

As I said, I know it's purely a money thing, but if the show is well received and the audience is clamouring for more, then why not give them what they want?

Regarding the Pilot, I thought it was fine. The majority of the casting was perfect, but I felt the writers attempted to convey TOO much, too many characters too quickly. There was no room to breathe and each character (Barring Ned and Daenarys) generally felt rather short changed. Still, it comes down to such a dense series of books having to be truncated to fit 10 episodes...

With better pacing this show could be wonderful. We shall have to see...


Hugo - CLOSE THE DOOR!!

 

[Out Of My Vulcan Mind]

Re: Game of Thones: 1x01 - "Winter is Coming" - Premieres April 17 on

^^^
A good middle ground that balances economics and storytelling needs is to give the season premiere and season finale extra time - making them 80-85 minutes - as HBO did with Treme, for example. I'd like to see them take that approach with Game of Thrones.

 

[Reliant Robin]

Re: Game of Thones: 1x01 - "Winter is Coming" - Premieres April 17 on

Nitpicking complaints, that only the book fanatics such as myself will bite back growls about:

While performed capably and even impressively at times, Mark Addy's Robert doesn't strike me as a man who ever commanded a rebel army through essentially the force of his battlefield skill and irresistible charisma/animal magnitude. They didn't even bother to make him physically imposing at all with lifts or the like.

The Kingsguard aren't introduced -at all-. Much of the history in general seems to be lost, and what was there was a bit clunky.

The barely 'grey area' as it is of Dany's wedding night from the books becomes clear-cut rape with only a modicum of hesitation from Drogo. The "No." scene is taken completely into a different direction. In the book it is a request, in the show it is a command.

"The things I do for love" is said without an ounce of regret or even serious consideration, he barely even looks at Bran as he pushes him out the window. That whole scene in fact felt off.

Dany's horse is given a little lip service, but she only gets on it as prelude to a forced consummation. Drogo's gift and in fact his entire character felt nearly emotionless, digging the writers into an even deeper hole than their 'love story' was in originally.

Definitely agree about Robert, he wasn't nearly imposing or charismatic enough IMHO, in the book you kind of got the impression he made Ned agree through pure force of character as much as anything else.

Also very much agree about Dany's horse: really missed the "Tell Khal Drogo he has given me the wind" line, I was waiting for it, and really not happy with the decision to make the consummation into basically a rape. Don't see how Khal Drogo's character is going to recover from that, really, and it's a shame if they only ever show him as a brute savage, because his strength becomes so important to Dany's development.

 

[Caliburn24]

Re: Game of Thones: 1x01 - "Winter is Coming" - Premieres April 17 on

In regards to future seasons of the show...bolding mine...

If Thrones survives, it will share the high-class problem of popular, sprawling, mythology-heavy series like Lost: Can it stick the landing? (Martin, a Lost fan, hated its spiritual finale: "They left a big turd on my doorstep.") Martin, 62, has written four of a planned seven novels; the fifth is due in July, six years after its predecessor. He says he can keep pace with HBO if — a big if — it devotes two seasons to the massive third volume and three in total to the fourth and fifth (whose narratives overlap), as he hopes. If not? "Then yeah, they may catch up with me."

​

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,2065251-3,00.html

The third book definitely has enough material for two ten episode seasons.

 

[Bishop76]

Re: Game of Thones: 1x01 - "Winter is Coming" - Premieres April 17 on

That's a lot of commitment from HBO, though. Probably a bit much to ask for.

 

[JD]

Re: Game of Thones: 1x01 - "Winter is Coming" - Premieres April 17 on

Also very much agree about Dany's horse: really missed the "Tell Khal Drogo he has given me the wind" line, I was waiting for it, and really not happy with the decision to make the consummation into basically a rape. Don't see how Khal Drogo's character is going to recover from that, really, and it's a shame if they only ever show him as a brute savage, because his strength becomes so important to Dany's development.

As I've mentioned upthread, I can't see the show till the DVD, but from what you guys have said this does sound kind of aggravating. I'm wondering if perhaps they did it to try to make Dany even more sympathetic? It's been a while, but if I remember correctly she started hesitant, but consented after a bit in the book, right?

 

[Bishop76]

Re: Game of Thones: 1x01 - "Winter is Coming" - Premieres April 17 on

My theory is that they're doing it to strengthen her character a bit and have her take a more active role in "taming" his savage side a bit more. Yeah, it's not exactly like the novel, but it's an adaptation - it's not supposed to be. We'll see next episode, more than likely, but I don't think they'll screw the pooch as much as people seem to think.

Watched it again tonight and I liked it even more the second time, I think. Man, would it be great if HBO did choose to fund this thing through all 7 books.

 

[Kegg]

Re: Game of Thones: 1x01 - "Winter is Coming" - Premieres April 17 on

In regards to future seasons of the show...bolding mine...

If Thrones survives, it will share the high-class problem of popular, sprawling, mythology-heavy series like Lost: Can it stick the landing? (Martin, a Lost fan, hated its spiritual finale: "They left a big turd on my doorstep.") Martin, 62, has written four of a planned seven novels; the fifth is due in July, six years after its predecessor. He says he can keep pace with HBO if — a big if — it devotes two seasons to the massive third volume and three in total to the fourth and fifth (whose narratives overlap), as he hopes. If not? "Then yeah, they may catch up with me."

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,2065251-3,00.html

The third book definitely has enough material for two ten episode seasons.

Assuming that the sixth and seventh books both manage a single season each... that's a minimum of nine seasons of television.

I don't know. By standards of HBO drama that's pretty damn long (where nothing's reached past season six... or seven, depending how you count the final stretch of the Sopranos).

Heaven forfend if the final two books are worth more then one season apiece, also...

 

[Hyperspace05]

Re: Game of Thones: 1x01 - "Winter is Coming" - Premieres April 17 on

Also very much agree about Dany's horse: really missed the "Tell Khal Drogo he has given me the wind" line, I was waiting for it, and really not happy with the decision to make the consummation into basically a rape. Don't see how Khal Drogo's character is going to recover from that, really, and it's a shame if they only ever show him as a brute savage, because his strength becomes so important to Dany's development.

I have no doubt that they will show a more tender side of Drogo as their relationship develops. Some leaked images show evidence of that, so google searching lead me to this w/ example images: (potential SPOILER ALERT for non-readers) http://fuckyeahdanydrogo.tumblr.com/

As far as the wedding night scene... I haven't seen the episode yet (but will soon) - but from the way it is being described it sounds like it makes more sense than the book version. Sure, the 1st night is consensual, but after that he is extremely rough with her in typical 'Dothraki style' for quite a while. So what they are doing is just making a more 'natural' evolution of their relationship within the time-limits they have. It will still take the same (or very similar) path from this point onwards.

 

[Kelthaz]

Re: Game of Thones: 1x01 - "Winter is Coming" - Premieres April 17 on

I can't say I found a problem with Khal Drogo "raping" Dany or Robert's less than powerful appearance. That's exactly how I imagined things when I read them in the book. If anything Robert looks tougher than I imagined.

 

[Reliant Robin]

Re: Game of Thones: 1x01 - "Winter is Coming" - Premieres April 17 on

Yeah, but from an audience perspective, it's much harder to develop sympathy for a man we've just seen roughly rape a seventeen year old girl while apparently mocking her lack of consent than it is to develop sympathy for a man who demonstrates he's capable of gentleness and empathy despite being very much a man of his culture. It's not nice at all, and I think there's going to be a lot of viewers who really can't forgive him for that - especially since about the first thing we see of him, and first impressions stick.

 

[IndyJones]

Re: Game of Thones: 1x01 - "Winter is Coming" - Premieres April 17 on

roughly rape a seventeen year old girl while apparently mocking her lack of consent

That's not how I read that scene at all.

 

[Checkmate]

Re: Game of Thones: 1x01 - "Winter is Coming" - Premieres April 17 on

Not only that, but rough != rape.

People through that word around too damn often.